


Silly Bear

by silv3rbloodalch3mist



Category: Soul Eater
Genre: Asexual Relationship, F/M, Found Family, Friends to Lovers, its 2020 and im making kiddpat hAPPEN YALL, post-manga
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-28
Updated: 2020-02-28
Packaged: 2021-02-27 20:47:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,045
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22771996
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/silv3rbloodalch3mist/pseuds/silv3rbloodalch3mist
Summary: "Some people care too much. I think it's called love."- Winnie the PoohWith Kidd away so often on Reaper Business, Patti decides to make him a little something to help with the homesickness. And inadvertently gives Kidd the push he needs to confront his feelings for the bubbly demon pistol.Or, Kidd Finally Catches the Fuck Up and Patti's Patience is Rewarded
Relationships: Death the Kid/Patty Thompson, mentions of Soul Evans/Maka Albarn
Comments: 6
Kudos: 31





	Silly Bear

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally written in one night for Zi's Valentine's Week challenge, but I didn't get to do any of the other prompts so now it's just chillin on its own. The prompt was 'Teddy Bear'.
> 
> Note on the characterization here: I take a lot of liberties here. Like,,, a lot. Namely bc I've never really written Kidd's POV and also bc Ohkubo can eat my entire ass for how dirty he did Patti. I love her bubbly joy but I also refuse to believe that's all there is to her, so my Patti is a little more,,, mature? Still goofy and Soff, but I refuse to write her as plainly vapid and childish.

Leaving his weapons alone in the house for longer than three days was always a gamble. Liz could go on a pinterest binge and Kidd would come home to a completely redesigned living room (kept thankfully in balance after the last Incident). Patti could decide she was going to take up soap making and the kitchen would be filled with curing molds and lye mixtures and more biodegradable glitter than he knew existed in the world. Their whims were as varied and as numerous as fish in the ocean, and Kidd was never quite sure what he’d come back to. It was one of the main reasons he tried not to go anywhere without them.

And also because they were his partners and he loved them, of course.

But there was another outcome even scarier than Liz deciding to repaint half the hallways or Patti deciding to take up composting. It was this that Kidd came home to after a week-long meeting in the Witches’ Realm. He could come home and there would be nothing visibly amiss at all.

This was arguably the scariest.

“Girls?” Kidd called out as he set his bags down at the door. He had already dropped Soul off back at home (and had been witness to a rather touching reunion between death scythe and meister) and he had no other plans except take a much needed shower and watch a documentary with his weapons while they complained about the subpar pizza offerings in Death City.

Twin calls of “KIDD!” echoed from different parts of the house and he could hear running footsteps approaching. He took a moment to roll up his sleeves and brace himself, a small smile growing on his lips. Patti found him first; swinging herself over the handrail that led to the second floor with a delighted whoop and barely seeming to touch the ground before she was throwing herself into his arms. He caught her with practiced ease, already properly braced to have one (1) overexcited demon pistol fling herself at him with no reservations. Patti simply laughed, throwing her arms around his neck and pressing her nose under his jaw. 

“Welcome home, Kidd!” she sang, and Kidd chuckled at her expected response to his homecoming.

“Thank you, Patti. It’s good to be home.”

Liz came at a much more sedated pace, although she was still jogging closer with a warm smile. She ruffled his hair as soon as she was close enough and brought him into a half-hug. He was no longer short enough for her to rest her chin on his head, but the feelings conveyed were the same. Their souls all slotted back into alignment and tension he hadn’t even known he was carrying in his shoulders melted away. “Have fun?” she asked.

Kidd sighed. “It’s  _ very good  _ to be home,” he answered vaguely, and Patti snorted against his neck.

“That’s Kidd Speak for ‘ _ I hated every moment and only the thoughts of perfectly symmetrical rose bushes or other natural phenomina kept me from Murder’ _ ,” she stage-whispered to Liz, who cackled in reply. Kidd shook his head as he set Patti back on her feet.

“Or it could mean I missed my friends and home?”

“Nope. Rose bushes and murder. I’m fluent in Kidd Speak, I know these things.”

He laughed and shook his head, patting Patti’s head and allowing his fingers one brief pass through her messy golden locks before stepping back to pick up his bags. “Whatever it meant, I am glad to be home. I’m also starving. Any suggestions?” Liz wiggled her cell phone at him.

“Just waitin’ on you before I put in an order at Slice of Life. The usual?”

Kidd nearly sighed. “That sounds wonderful.”

“Gogogo!” Patti urged, gently pushing on his shoulders. “I’ve got a whole playlist of videos for us to catch up on! I even made sure there was eight!”

“I’ve mentioned before that I adore you both with all my soul, correct?

“You could stand to mention it more,” Liz said with a toss of her hair and a smile before heading towards the living room. Patti gave him another quick hug from behind, pressing her cheek to his with a delighted hum, and gave him a gentle pat before running after her sister. He was likely smiling like a fool, but he really had missed his girls. Soul was great company, and an invaluable ally and advisor, but no one could replace Liz and Patti.

As he made his way to his room, Kidd kept a keen eye out for anything that might be out of place or new. Just because he hadn’t seen anything from the entryway didn’t mean that all was well. Whatever had happened, he hoped he found it soon; the suspense was not doing anything for his already frayed nerves.

But nothing. Everything was spic and span and just as he had left it all the way to his room. It even looked like they had kept up with the dusting while he was gone. Just as he was beginning to relax, he opened the door to his room and came to a confused halt. There, on top of his impeccably made bed, were two golden teddy bears.

“What on earth…” he muttered, setting his bags down and approaching the two plush toys. He’d had teddy bears as a child, usually themed after his dear departed Father, but that had been years ago. These had to be new. Picking up the closest bear, he brought it closer for inspection. Its fur was more of a dark honey blonde than the other, with embroidered, lidded eyes and a curling smile. It wore a familiar cowboy hat and white tie, and an ‘L’ was embroidered into the foot. All of the detail work was done with tiny, neat stitches, and he marveled over the seams.

Was this handmade?

The second bear had bright golden fur and wide, baby blue eyes. The cheeks had been embroidered with little pink hearts on the cheeks, and this bear wore a Spartoi jacket and a black hat with floppy ears. A ‘P’ was embroidered into the foot.

Kidd chuckled, setting the bear down next to her sister. It was a rather heartwarming homecoming gift, although Kidd wasn’t entirely sure what he would do with two teddy bears clearly inspired by his weapons. For now, he’d leave them on his bed. Maybe Liz or Patti would have an explanation for him when he went downstairs.

After a long-needed and long-anticipated shower, Kidd made his way back downstairs to check the rest of the house before settling down for the night with his friends. The rest of his search yielded nothing but Liz in the kitchen with three boxes of pizza, getting out the plates and napkins. “Ah, perfect timing Kidd,” she said with a grin. “Help me carry the drinks, will ya’?”

“Of course,” he replied, going to the fridge and pulling out a can of Liz’s favorite flavored water and Patti’s favorite soda. “Should I be thanking you or Patti for the homecoming gifts?”

“Oh, the bears? Those were Patti,” Liz explained. “She went on a stuffed animal kick while you were gone. Even made Maka a little Soul bear, it was adorable.”

Kidd blinked in surprise. “She made them herself?” Although in hindsight, it shouldn’t have surprised him. Patti was a creator at heart, bouncing between hobbies until she mastered it then moved on to the next. Kidd still had several lumpy socks and a crooked quilt made by her hands somewhere in his room. When he had left she was mastering woodburning.

“Yup. Don’t know why we got her an embroidery machine if she never fuckin’ uses it, but she just said it wouldn’t have the same heart if she’d done it by machine.” Liz tried to sound affronted, but her expression was fond. Kidd didn’t need to experience the same things they had as children to know how much of a relief it was to Liz to see your younger sister blossoming into an incredibly talented and diverse craftswoman; to be creating and giving as was the true nature of her soul instead of stealing and killing. Peace time was a chore to maintain, but remembering Patti’s smile as she eagerly showed him her latest creation made it all worth it.

“Then I shall go thank her for the gift,” he said, grabbing a bottle of water for himself before heading into the living room. Patti was already on the couch with the remote in hand as she navigated through YouTube to find what she wanted. She beamed when she noticed his approach, eagerly patting the spot next to her.

“Come on! There’s a new John Oliver and that one woodworking guy you like came out with a new video.”

He wasn’t sure exactly when YouTube had become a family activity, but it had, and he was rather grateful for it. He knew more than anyone how sheltered his own upbringing had been, so it was an interesting peek into the lives of others and an exploration of the world they defended every time Patti hopped into his bed with her laptop or dragged him into the living room.

“Wonderful. And thank you, Patti.”

“Hey, don’t thank me yet,” she teased. “There’s at least one horror Let’s Play in here and you’re sitting next to Liz.”

“Rude. Also, not what I meant. Thank you for the teddy bears, Patti. They’re incredibly impressive.”

Patti blinked at him for a moment before smiling brightly, cheeks flushed a soft pink. “Awww, it’s no problem, Kidd! Just a little sumthin’ sumthin’ I whipped up.”

“By hand? In a week? I don’t think that is just  _ ‘sumthin’ sumthin’ _ ’.”

Patti snorted at his attempt to copy her slang, but it did not distract from the way she was pulling shyly on some of the blonde hair curled at the nape of her neck, or how her flush was quickly approaching the tips of her ears. It was, as always, incredibly endearing, and - also as always - Kidd made a mental note to compliment the younger weapon more. Her reactions were always worth it. 

(Though… Kidd didn’t know that, if asked, he could explain exactly  _ why _ .)

“Just thought it might be nice, ya know?” Patti explained to her knees. “You’re just gonna get busier with all these treaties and taking care of the different international branches, so next time we can’t go with you, now you’ll have a little Liz and Patti to take with you! So that way you won’t be so lonely.”

Now it was Kidd’s turn to blink at her a little owlishly. Most people wouldn’t think one  _ could  _ be lonely surrounded by so many people at these meetings, but… she was right. It was lonely. Even when Soul could come, it was obvious there were places both of them would much rather be, with people they’d much rather be with. Kidd didn’t hold it against him, but he also didn’t know how to fix it. Leave it to Patti to know more about his emotional state than he did even when they were literally dimensions apart.

It really should stop catching him off guard how observant and insightful Patti could be. 

He smiled fondly, setting down his drink in order to lean over and pull Patti into a hug. “Thank you, Patti,” he murmured again, and Patti quickly returned the hug.

“Anytime,” she responded just as softly, face tucked against his shoulder. “You don’t have to take ‘em, I know it might be embarrassing…”

“Not at all. I’ll bring them with me whenever the real deals have to stay here.” He could feel Patti’s smile against his shoulder, and sure enough, when he pulled away she was smiling brilliantly; blue eyes sparkling and twin dimples pressed into flushed cheeks. It made something in his chest warm and churn inside, but this was nothing new. Patti’s smiles had had this effect on him for years. Didn’t make it any less surprising or wonderful.

Or mildly concerning, but eh. That was a worry for tomorrow Kidd (as it had been for the past, hm, three years now?)

“I promise I won’t get mad if you secretly snuck noise makers in them.”

“Oh please, I saved that for Maka. Her Soul-bear makes slurping noises.”

Liz came into the living room to find her meister and sister both collapsed against each other, laughing to the point of tears, and she just smiled.

* * *

Kidd had tried to avoid coming home so late (early?), but it really couldn’t be avoided. Even death gods had to sit through airport security, and their flight back from Ukraine had been delayed for several hours besides. It was encroaching on three in the morning, and Kidd knew his weapons were both already asleep. 

So much for his customary Welcome Home tackle.

Kidd silently made his way upstairs, stopping into his room to drop off his bags. He carefully set the backpack with his paperwork from the trip and his teddy bears on his desk, unzipping the bag to set the two bears out on the surface. They had turned out to be a huge help on long trips like the one he’d just been on, and he wasn’t ashamed to have them out on the bed and waiting when he came back to whatever room he was staying in. He usually sat them on a nearby chair when he was bedding down for the night, but on nights when the stress beat like a second heartbeat against the inside his skull or he felt terribly alone without two chattering souls in harmony with his own, he would pull them up onto the bed with him.

If he ended up sleeping with the Patti bear curled into his arms, well, the only person who could tattle on him was Soul, and Kidd had more than enough blackmail on the sarcastic death scythe to keep him quiet.

Giving them one more fond smile, Kidd slipped out of the room and down the hall, feet barely touching the ground in an attempt to stay silent. As he stood outside Liz’s room, he took a deep, calming breath before cracking the door open. 

Yup. It was a disaster. There was a reason he avoided her room as much as possible, and it was because it always looked like a hurricane had hit.

The elder pistol was draped spreadeagle on the bed, hair tied up in messy bun and soft, wuffling snores keeping time with the rising and falling of her breath. Even in her california king, she always managed to sleep with her feet slipping off the edge, and Kidd quietly made his way in to tuck her feet back under the blankets. She only sniffed in reply, twisting onto her side with a grumble, and Kidd smiled at her fondly. In sleep was one of the only times she looked completely at peace, and Kidd left her to her dreams.

Patti’s room was directly across the hall so it was only a matter of moments before he opened her door silently. Unlike her sister, Patti slept curled up in a ball, hair loose and messy around her like a halo. Her back was to him and her blanket had somehow ended up on the floor. He shook his head as he silently made his way inside, scooping the blanket up off the floor and giving it a careful shake before gathering it in his arms to drape back over her. He could see her shivering. Years of practice had helped him to develop the perfect technique for putting the blanket back over the young woman without waking her, and it was just a matter of muscle memory as he first draped the blanket over her feet. Kidd pulled it up the rest of her body slowly, biting back a wry grin at her ‘ _ The Kishin Wants Me Dead’  _ sleep shorts.

It wasn’t until he got to her waist that he noticed she was clutching something to her chest in her sleep. Curious, Kidd circled the bed to finish pulling the blanket up from her front. What he found had him stopping in his tracks.

Patti’s cheek was pressed against the top of a third teddy bear, bigger than either of his and nearly as big as her torso was long. The fur was pitch black, with a white nose and a stern little frown embroidered in red. The whole thing was a little crooked and some of the stitches were visible even in the dark, which made him think this was her first attempt, but that thought was here and gone in a moment. 

He was still trying to process the gold eyes the bear had, or the distinctive three white lines that marked both ears.

Another shiver went through Patti’s body and she clutched her bear closer with a soft whine. She clung to it like a lifeline, and the part of him that felt hopelessly young and mortal and human popped and fizzled at the mere thought. It was definitely a Death the Kidd teddy bear; the missing companion to the Thompson bears in his room. But only Patti had this particular bear; careless with her own belongings she may be, Liz treasured anything Patti made and treated it with the utmost respect. His bear would have been by her bedside or on a shelf if she’d had one.

He shouldn’t read into it. Why did he even want to? So what Patti had made a bear Him to hold close when he was gone and she was feeling lonely? They were best friends, it was a normal best friend thing to do. She’d made Maka a Soul plush as well!

… Okay, maybe comparing her actions to that of a couple who had been painfully in love for longer than he’d known them and whom Kidd knew of at least  _ one  _ was thinking of marriage already - if the way Soul got sidetracked every time they walked past a jewelry shop with rings in the window was any indication - wasn’t the best choice to keep his heart rate low.

Kidd knelt near the edge of the bed, hiding the lower half of his face in his arms. He knew he was… fond. Of Patti. As more than a weapon or just a friend. It was hard not to be, really. She was just so…  _ alive,  _ forgive the irony. She was sunshine and hellfire and moonlight all in one, and Kidd was one of the few who ever got to see the person Patti was behind the seemingly ever-present smile and innocent charm. She was complex and faceted and  _ kind,  _ and it was hard not to fall into her orbit and just devote yourself to her.

Being absolutely sure that his feelings were one-sided had helped with that fractionally, but he was starting to wonder if he had been missing something right in front of his eyes. Literally.

Patti shifted and sighed, eyes flickering behind her eyelids, and Kidd knew he had stayed too long. Even in sleep, there was only so much time before her soul registered his presence, and it seemed he had used up his. Shoot.

He leaned back a bit from the bed so he wasn’t quite so close as Patti’s eyes flickered open. “Mmm,” she hummed as she yawned, fighting tiredly to keep her mouth closed. “Kidd?”

“Hey,” he said softly, reaching out to lay a hand on her shoulder. His thumb began to rub slow circles into her skin. “Go back to sleep.”

“You’re home?” she murmured, tilting her head up towards his hand so she could press her cheek against his skin. Gods, she was precious when she was sleepy.

“Yes, I am,” Kidd said softly. He turned his hand so his palm was curved around the soft line of her jaw and gently rubbed his thumb against her cheek. “I’ll still be here in the morning. Go to sleep, pretty girl.” She arched into his touch, pale gold strands of hair brushing against his skin and lighting his nerves up. The bear was gently moved to some place behind her, and instead, now Patti was tugging him closer by the front of his shirt.

“‘Mere,” she demanded tiredly, and Kidd could deny her nothing. He carefully crawled into the bed with her, stretching out as he sank into the soft mattress and her embrace. She uncurled from her little ball only long enough so she could curl around  _ him  _ instead; her head pressed to his chest and her leg hooked over his knee. She hummed and smiled, arms wrapped loosely around his waist. "Better," she sighed, a soft, pleased sound that made his heart melt.

"That's hardly fair to the bear," he said softly. His arms slowly moved around her, keeping her pressed against him. He began to comb his long fingers through her hair just how she liked and started to work out some knots as gently as possible.

She huffed out a small, tired laugh. "Missed you," Patti murmured, tilting her head so she could look at him with sleepy blue eyes. Kidd melted a little more. He couldn't tell if he liked this more or equal to the Welcome Home tackle.

Leaning down, Kidd pressed a soft kiss to her forehead. "Missed you too. The bears are nice, but I prefer the real Patti." She hummed quietly in delight, soft cheeks flushing pink.

"Flatterer," she accused. Patti hugged him closer, pressing up until she could return his kiss with a quick peck to the very tip of his chin. Little kisses from Patti weren't rare, but he also usually wasn't tangled up with her in bed in the middle of the night. It made his heart do that warm, melting, churning thing again, and Kidd wasn't sure how much longer he'd be able to ignore it now.

"When I wake up, I'm gonna kiss you for real."

Oh. Well at least she was kind enough to give him a warning.

"If that's okay," she added, ducking her face down to press into his shoulder. "Ya know, with you."

Was it okay? He  _ wanted  _ her to, but would it be okay? He wasn't sure if he was even  _ allowed to,  _ being a god and all. But then Patti gently scratched her nails against his back on either side of his spine, just the way he liked, and Kidd decided ' _ Fuck the Pantheon, I do what I want'. _

"As long as you let me up so I can brush my teeth first. I have airplane mouth." Patti stuck out her tongue.

"Gross. I don't wanna kiss you anymore."

"But I already put it in my planner."

Patti giggled against his shoulder, hugging him tighter. "Oh my god."

"I used a pink gel pen and everything," Kidd continued in an easy deadpan, lips curling into a grin. "Eight-thirty, kiss Patti. Nine, make breakfast. Nine-thirty, do nothing for the rest of the day. Profit?"

"We're kissing for thirty minutes?" 

Kidd would deny the strangled choking sound he made at her innocent question until the day he died. Or discorperated. Whatever it was shinigamis did when they passed on. Patti just snorted again, wiggling closer. “Go to sleep, silly,” she sighed, eyes drifting closed. Within moments, her breathing was easy and regular once again, her hands fisted in the back of his shirt.

Kidd smiled, brushing a few wild strands of hair from her eyes. “Good night, Patti,” he murmured, before closing his eyes and following her lead as he drifted to sleep.

Hours later, when Liz woke up and checked on Patti, the two were still tangled together; Kidd’s cheek pressed to the top of Patti’s head and her hand pressed to his back under his shirt. Liz smiled, shaking her head as she carefully closed the door once again. If she was lucky, Patti would either keep him distracted long enough she could clean up the kitchen, or he’d be in such a good mood that he wouldn’t mind they’d completely trashed the place while he was gone in an attempt to learn how to make their own beauty products.


End file.
